Netanyahu warns of ‘eighth front’ ideological battle for American hearts and minds with Christian leaders

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used a meeting with Evangelical Christian leaders in Florida today to underscore Israel’s reliance on faith-based allies in the United States, as divisions inside the U.S. over Israel’s war and U.S. support continue to surface.

The meeting came days after Netanyahu held talks on Monday with President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, amid growing debate within conservative circles over the scope of American backing for Israel and the direction of U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East.

Speaking to the leaders, Netanyahu said Israel has emerged “in many ways victorious” from what he described as a “seven-front war,” but warned that an additional front now looms in the West.

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“There’s an eighth front,” he said, describing a struggle “for the hearts and minds of people, especially young people in the West, and for me especially in the United States.” He framed that effort not only as Israel’s fight, but as a broader one. “It’s our common Judeo-Christian civilization’s battle,” he said.

The prime minister argued that this ideological front requires the same resolve as military action. “There are some people who believe that faith should be silent and terrorism should be understood,” Netanyahu said. “Faith should speak its voice and terrorism should be confronted, not understood, confronted and defeated.”

Pro-Palestinian Muslim protesters hold a banner saying “From the river to the sea..” and chant at a demonstration calling for an end to Israeli attacks on Gaza. London, UK, Dec. 9, 2023. ( Andy Soloman/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Netanyahu repeatedly emphasized the historical and ideological bond between Christian Zionists and Israel. “You are representatives of the Christian Zionists who made Jewish Zionism possible,” Netanyahu said, crediting U.S. Christian support as central to the reestablishment of the Jewish state. “I can say that we have no better friends.”

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President Donald Trump listens as Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during an arrival at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday, Dec. 29, 2025. (Alex Brandon/AP)

Netanyahu told the group he had spoken with Trump the day before and described what he sees as global threats facing Israel and its allies. He pointed to “two forces,” identifying “radical Shiite Islam,” led by Iran, and “radical Sunni Islam,” which he said is led by the Muslim Brotherhood.

He also highlighted persecution of Christians in multiple regions, saying Christians are being targeted “in Syria, in Lebanon, in Nigeria, in Turkey, and beyond,” while arguing that Israel plays a unique protective role. “One country protects the Christian community, enables it to grow, defends it, and makes sure that it thrives,” Netanyahu said. “That country is Israel. There is no other. None.”

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People hold an Israeli and US flag in front of a large group of anti-Israel protesters march outside The Grove shopping center on Black Friday, carrying a giant banner reading “Shut it Down for Palestine” in Los Angeles, Nov. 24, 2023. (David Swanson/AFP via Getty Images)

Netanyahu said Israel is working toward broader cooperation to assist Christian communities under threat worldwide. “We are joining an effort to have basically a United Nations of countries that support Christian communities around the world,” he said, adding, “Just as you are helping us, we want to help back.”

Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, who attended the meeting, later wrote on X that Evangelical leaders’ commitment to Israel was “inspiring” and said shared values would “fortify the bond between both our nations.”